At the top of the Diane Martel-directed clip, Keys sits silently, getting her mane of messy curls primed. “What’s going on kiddo?” the director asks halfheartedly. “Hey,” an ill-at-ease Keys mutters. As he reaches out to caress her hair, she pulls away. “It looks nice,” he offers up. “Thanks,” the singer whisper shyly. “Let’s go,” the director demands.

As she apathetically fingers at the piano, Key croons the second single off her chart-topping fifth studio album, Girl on Fire. “It’s been a while. I’m not who I was before,” she sings. “Don’t be mad. It’s just a brand new kind of me. Can’t be bad. I found a brand new kind of free.”

It’s then the singer leaves her post at the piano, slowly stepping into the shadows of backstage as she croons about self-discovery.

“It took a long, long road to get here,” Keys belts out as she finds a room with a few mirrors. “Took a brave, brave girl to try.” Ardently addressing her own reflection, she sings, “I’ve taken one too many excuses. One too many lies. Don’t be surprised.”

As the tune hits its triumphant crescendo, Keys grows more impassioned, stripping off her wig of curls as she strides through mist. “If you were a friend, you’d want to get to know me again,” she sings out. “If you were worth the smile, you’d be happy to see me smile.”

After falling to the floor in tears, Keys resurrects herself and returns to the stage. “I found a brand new kind of me,” she hums back to the piano where she began, as the director looks on critically in the background. “Don’t be mad. It’s a brand new time for me.” As a smile spreads across her face, the clip ends with a note: “The journey continues…”